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Veteran’s Day


In 1965 I was in the Army, stationed on the island of Okinawa, when our unit was put on alert. We prepared to go to combat, but we didn’t even know where we were going. It wasn’t obvious that we were going to Viet Nam; there were several trouble spots at the time, but no active wars. We just knew we were about to ramp it up somewhere.

Since our unit, the 173rd Airborne Brigade, was the first combat unit in, I was in the first round of soldiers to come home a year later. I didn’t come home to any abuse; the protests had not really started up yet. I came home to something more like anonymity.

Here at Sandpipers, they hold a short Veteran’s Day ceremony every year. For the first time ever, I attended and participated in a Veteran’s Day ceremony. For the first time ever, I accepted public acknowledgement and appreciation as a Veteran. That was a moving moment.

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I’m confused

 I turn to MSNBC News on the television and they’re attacking Conservative Republicans.  I turn to FOX News, and they’re criticizing Liberal Democrats.  That’s not what I’m looking for.  I just want the news channel that tells the news. Well, if we’re going to make fun of each other, let’s go to the trained professionals.  I turn to the Comedy Channel, and they’re making fun of Conservative Republicans.  They’re doing a pretty good job too (after all, they *are* trained professionals).  For the opposing point of view, to balance things out, I turn to the Conservative Comedy Channel.  Channel…….  Channel………   I don’t get it.  Liberals are all over comedy.  Where is the Conservative counterpart?  
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I think

 I think it was about a month ago I complained that it had gotten chilly here for a day.  Well, it’s happened again.  It didn’t get out of the high 60s today.  Cloudy.  Blustry. It is only forecast for the 70s tomorrow.  It won’t likely get back to the 80s until Saturday! I don’t know how much more of this we can take!  
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The thing about this deck

 Is the decking. There aren’t any screws in it. Well, actually, there are screws.  In fact, there are 24 screws per plank; all screwed in diagonally from the sides.  300 square feet of deck, and not a single visible screw.  
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Life sucks

 We stopped in the afternoon to exchange some merchandise at Lowe’s.  We were listening to the Bronco game on Sirius Radio.  Judy was so kind as to go inside to take care of business and leave me in the car to wait and listen. I listened to the Broncos, but I was distracted by the screeching sounds out my window.  I drove back around to the street and parked right next to the Green Parakeets. It seemed too early in the day for them to be there, but there they were.  I estimate 250 of them.  Even though my angle is crooked, you have to listen to them to get the full effect. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3wcvGT09CMA The parakeets are fun, but I can see them any time I choose to go to that part of McAllen in the morning or evening.  I was really excited to spot 4 red-crowned parrots in the middle of all these parakeets though.  I still need red-crowned parrots for my year-list. But on closer inspection, I found my red-crowned parrots weren’t.  They were Mitred Parakeets.  Mitred Parakeets?  They aren’t even listed as being here.  They are so not here that they’re not even on the ebird list of birds that might possibly be here.  I can’t even record them on the list. Sometimes life just isn’t fair.  Oh.  Wait.  I emailed Mary Gustafson about the Mitred Parakeets.  She just wrote back and explained how to do a write-in entry on ebird for *really* unusual birds.  I got to count them after all.  Thank you Mary.  Year-bird number 382.  (We already had them on the life-list from Florida.) Life is good again.